I am home again from an excellent trip to Scarborough and an interesting but bitterly cold wind day at Durham from which I have caught a chill rather than a full blown cold, but which has led me to decide to cancel the wrong dates Travel Lodge booking at Brighton.
I had adopted a relaxed approach for the trip to Scarborough when I commenced writing on the morning of Tuesday 27th August 2013. I had only 7.6 hours of Sleep Apnoea Treatment use averaging 8.2 hours this month with a high of 8.3 and a low of 8. With the total hours for 30 days and ranging from a total of 240 to 250 hours, a low of 6 and a high of 10. I packed the machine for transporting and redid the bed from top to toe for my return. I did forget to contact the special unit at the Freeman for a new pack of air filters. I will now do this Monday as well ask about a replacement full face mask
I had a debate whether to go casual on the trip or take the suit and a casual option and decided on the suit when I found the green trousers had not dried over night and the brown had a stain which requires attention leaving only the blue and the casual green.
I also managed to contact the GP health centre to rearrange the free cardiovascular assessment from September 12th when I am at Derby to 3.15 on the 16th the Monday of the week when Durham play Notts at the Emirates. No blood test is required which would have put off the assessment until October. I failed to contact about an service inspection of the central heating system where there is confusion whether it took place when the hot water system was repaired. I will also attempt to sort this out on Monday
I then debated whether to take more food than usual because where I am staying is mainly self catering apartments with kitchen areas in what is also described as studio bedrooms. I gambled a took margarine and milk, bread roll, as well as salami, pate, olives, lettuce, tomato and the Snickers packet, peanuts, dried figs, kitchen roll and towel and cutlery. This proved a good move because on arrival the room allocated contained a full built in cooker, microwave and a fridge with a freezer compartment. The TV had the full range of digital stations.
A breakfast bar with high stools separated the kitchen area from the high double bed which I used as a desk and there was a wall point close to the bed so I do not need the Sleep Apnoea machine extension lead. I discovered that I had not brought the plastic container with my fruit and nut, bran cereal combination but bought some Tesco’s Fruit and Nut Muesli from a neighbourhood store on way back from an orientation explore this evening. It is remarkable that the main supermarkets are now competing with the all hours corner stores which primarily the Asian community commenced to provide some two decades ago in substantial numbers and which broke the monopoly of nine to five trading practice.
Last Tuesday I had time to play some chess where I have been failing badly at level 4 with only a 46 games win run and 26 the next highest. I have achieved 1100 game run on Patience and over 10 million points on the latest round of Mah-Jong. I checked emails and did the latest TV review not listening to the radio on Monday.
I left the house just after 11 and had reached Morrison’s at Seaburn for Petrol and Cash before realising that I had not brought my store of pound coins and silver. I decided not to return and at the cafe asked for 8 pound coins change on their breakfast bap and coffee special offer of £2, It was around 11.40 when I was back on my way taking the A19 to the Boro and then the 174 and 171 to Whitby and then Scarborough. Along with ice creams, Snickers bard, bacon and sausage baps together with the salami rolls accounted for the increase in weigh approaching sixteen and a half stone once more. Appreciating this on return I have re-instituted a tight regime..
I had attempted to work out the locations of the Esplanade Villa Apartments and the Travel Lodge Scarborough beforehand and that of the Cricket ground from a small town map included in a volume of such maps as well as printing out directions from home to the Travel Lodge and to the cricket ground and vowed to buy a street guide as soon after arrival as practical.
In the event I successfully worked that I needed to head for South Bay and found the Esplanade high above the bay through a combination of common sense direction and luck going down the right street from the main road from the town centre across Valley road Bridge and along the small neighbourhood shopping centre which I immediately. Arriving an hour before registration time I found an adjacent public car park investing £2 instead of £1.50 although I could have paid by credit card the correct amount had I taken a bit more time to work out the system. Similarly I learned that I could have arrived early and used the car space booked on site at a cost of £7.50.
I walked the short distance to the main road to the small collection of stores, including a Sainsbury Local and two Costcutters, the second by the bus stop had the street guide coffee shop, and kebab and burger take away and most important of all The Albion Inn where I enjoyed a lemonade after a comfort break. The second task was the map with the Simsbury’s local and the Costcutter across the way did not have nor at first did the Costcutter express close to the bus stop in the direction of the town centre. Determined to avoid what happened in Birmingham I asked an assistant who showed me where there were three copies of a plain street map and guide. She apologised for not having one with attractions and other information added but this was exactly what i was seeking and proved an invaluable purchase.
Returning to the car I added some green olives stuffed with pimento to the small baguette I had freshly baked earlier and which I had filled with about half the French salami, having also prepared another which I hoped to use for lunch the following day.
I booked in just after 3pm as several others were also arriving and was shown the car space before the receptionist decided to bring my heavy case up the stairs to the room as lift was at the back of the property, although excellent as I was to discover when I departed.
The electricity is run by a metered card at £5 and £10 units with just under £3 available which the receptionist said should last a couple of days. However given the Sleep Apnoea machine, the use of the microwave and cooker, computer and TV as the evening progressed on the second night I realised even with the emergency button I purchased £5 worth and then forgot to bring the card home with me for potential future use.
Having unpacked and digested the environment I needed a towel but otherwise the room was excellent with a high comfy bed. My only regret is not finding the place before booking the Travel Lodge but hopefully there will be opportunity to visit again when there is no clashing with other events.
Just before 5 I set off on the explore the town with the first task locating the Travel lodge which appeared to be next to the Grand Hotel walking along the cliff side of the promenade with green walkways below. There is some car parking, if you are lucky along the beach side with Winter gardens complex at the far end where on my previous visit over a decade ago I listened to an orchestra playing during one afternoon. I then took the bridge walk down across to the hotel area of the town Grand Hotel across from which according to map the Travel lodge is located and not where I though it was as the building looked very much the hotel for elders where I had stayed for my only residential stay of four days. I have stayed overnight at a hotel also in the South Cliff invited by the Department of Health to join departmental staff for an evening mean who had been attending a training course, departing early the following morning without staying for the full English breakfast to get to the office for a full days work. To reach this point I had gone down a long sharp decline which suggest finding a bus route back might be a good idea. It was very hot and the view across the bay towards the castle on the North Bay headland was outstanding.
I found the bus station area more by luck and from the map where it is not marked and noting the stand for the buses from where I had noted the bus stop close to the Apartment block. From here I cross over a junction noting the sign to the cricket ground along North Marine Road and then read misread the map so a few yards from the main entrance to the ground (number 3 bus route) and did a complete circuit of the ground stopping on a seat in Trafalgar gardens to drink an ice cold Pepsi purchased from a local store. The ground was open with players getting used to conditions but I decided not to watch and made my way back needing to use the map as I though I had taken a short cut. The climb back up to the Esplanade was a great a challenge as anticipated but fortunately there was vacant bench seat before the main climb commenced,.
I enjoyed a bottle of cold water from the machine in the Apartment Villas and heated and eat the spicy chicken wings and most of the carton of green grapes brought along. Later a second cup of tea to that enjoyed on arrival was not thirst quenching and after watching an excellent episode of New Tricks without Armstrong and Jameison and introducing Nicholas Lyndhurst who played Rodney in Fools and Horses as the new fourth member. The story line this time concerned an unsolved murder in which the daughter murdered man discovered, he was not her biological father. The mother and the murdered man were former well known porn stars. There were several suspects, including the woman previously acquitted of the crime, a promising former jazz singer, another former porn staff who now admits she visited and found him dead and the father of the girl a former violent criminal who had attempted to purchases holdings of the porn star. The killer turns out to be the former manager of the jazz singer who killed the man after he had been humiliated as a lover!!!
There was tension between Gerry and the new man having lost two of the original three brought back retired officers in the series and because of his self confident attitude. However things soften when Gerry discovers he has a severely physically handicapped daughter. England were well on their way to winning the first 20 20 of three in the ladies competitions before New Tricks forgetting that I do not have an Internet connection until Thursday at the Travel Lodge. I was thirsty so i went down stairs for a cool coke, pressed the wrong number and got a sugary isotonic drink. Yuk. Must put some ice in the freezer unit and bring some drinks in tomorrow evening after the cricket. England did win and only need to win one of their remaining two games to win back the Ashes.
I did not sleep well, in part because of the new environment. There was also excitement at the prospects for an important game of cricket.
I set the alarm for 8 during the night and this was needed. I enjoyed a second bowl of Muesli fruit and Nut cereal having and one during the night with coffee and another cup this morning before setting off. I heated on a ring the soup from yesterday and enjoyed during the morning. I also used the remaining salami with two of the bread roles.
Just after nine I was about to go down stairs to purchase an on street parking voucher when I could not find the car keys and returned to room to find that they were in the lining with no immediate way of how they got there. Eventually I found a small hole in a pocket and retrieved the keys so was much later than planned in leaving for the bus to the town centre. I purchased the parking notice £4 where one has scratch out the month the dates and insert the vehicle registration number of the vehicle all left ones discretion. This effectively enabled me park until the morning with free parking overnight so if I cannot find a space at the Travel Lodge or use the loading area when I book in tomorrow there is the this last resort alternative as the climb up to the Esplanade is north something I fancy undertaking again..
I then went to the bus stop by Costcutters and took the bus towards the ton centre discovering it has a circular, so with no idea of where the bus goes before returning to the bus station bus station road from which North Marine Road extends after the roundabout, I took the second stop down by the coast road below the main shopping area and decided to walk over to the ground finding that all the best seats were well occupied. I sat above the wicket but the sun was hot so I decided to make my way to where there was shade and which proved good decision as one is as well as feels close to the play than elsewhere around the ground.
I did a circuit at lunch time buying a coffee ( Nescafe instant and hot water for £1.20) and discovered there is an entrance/exit to Trafalgar Square which is better for reaching the town centre. At tea I went on an explore down North Marine discovering a local store where I purchased a can of diet Pepsi for 59p and noted a restaurant serving reasonably priced meals. I was look to see car parking but it was evident these were some distance away and saw which direction the Cricket festival park and ride bus took going down what appeared as steep hill..
I stayed until the end of play and walked back to Villa Apartments after finding that the 7/17 circular service appeared to have packed up for the day with one bus arriving marked not in service although I did see one going in the opposite direction when I went to Sainsbury’s to purchase an evening meal. At the Sainsbury’s after temporarily depositing the shoulder bag in the car I purchased a beef in black bean sauce and rice dish £3.75, a carton of grapes £2 and as an after thought a six pack of Pepsi Max for £2 and during the evening and over night I enjoyed the main dish finishing the grapes of yesterday and three of Pepsi max cans, including one as part of breakfast with the Muesli Fruit and nut mix. I also had two of the Snickers bars and a third of the packet on salted peanuts along with some dried figs. I listened to the first half of the league cup game between and Newcastle where a makeshift team was being played by the Toon and scored two goals within the last 7 minutes to take the tie and earn a home daw against Leeds
I did not listen to the second half of the game preferring Do You think you think you know who you are where the subject now acts as an Adviser to Alan Sugar’s programme and who once worked for an advertising company which he came to own with Sugar as one of his clients. He explored two of his ancestors one on his mothers side who was a catholic who became High Sheriff of Belfast and the other an ancestor who fought for the Royalist Cause of Charles1st , lost all to the Parliamentarians and was reinstated and advanced with Charles 2nd.
I was in bed and asleep just ten and fully awake up around five I anticipate having a snooze at the cricket. During the period until now I have drafted the opening paragraphs of my storybook about which I am growing in confidence and reconsidered the options for the day and tonight. The decision is to keep most things packed and accessible in the car taking a much lighter shoulder bag with me to the ground, aiming to go out for a cooked meal at lunch time and use prepared rolls this evening, finding out how to get to the Travel Lodge from here by car and about parking this overnight before taking the car and parking as close to ground as possible on the way out on Friday morning and setting off home depending how this absorbing match to date is going. There was to be a significant twist before coming to a decision.
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